Gov. Bill Lee has announced a new digital tool to help inform Tennesseans when they will be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, Chattanoogan.com reports. The eligibility tool allows users to opt-in to receive updates and notifications about their vaccine phase and provides risk-based and age-based phase information at the county level.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has again stayed the scheduled execution of death row inmate Oscar Smith, WATE reports. In an order issued Tuesday, the court’s justices wrote that Smith’s Feb. 4 execution will be stayed pending further order “because of the multiple issues caused by the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.” Smith had been scheduled to die last June for the 1989 slayings of his estranged wife, Judy Lynn Smith, and her two sons from a previous marriage.

President-elect Joe Biden reportedly has selected Merrick Garland, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and a former U.S. Supreme Court nominee, as U.S. attorney general, The Hill reports. Then-President Barack Obama nominated Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2016 to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia, but the nomination was blocked in the Senate. The attorney general is one of the only major cabinet appointments Biden has yet to formally announce. He is expected to make that announcement later this week.

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts is praising federal courts nationwide for their flexibility in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, acknowledging in his annual year-end report the role technology has played in keeping courts running, the Associated Press reports. “Although we look forward to returning to normal sittings in our Courtroom, we have been able to stay current in our work. Other appellate courts around the country have responded with similar considered flexibility,” Roberts wrote in the seven-page report.

The Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims and the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board announced today that starting in 2021, decisions issued by the courts will be available on CourtListener, a free legal research website containing legal opinions from federal and state courts. Decisions from 2014 through 2020 will remain available on the TRACE system. Read more from the courts.

Former Pilot President Mark Hazelwood is poised to be released from more than two years of house arrest after his conviction in a fraud case was overturned in October, the Tennessean reports. The 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals last week stood by its decision to order a new trial for Hazelwood and two subordinates related to allegations they orchestrated a five-year fraud plot. Two judges on a three-judge panel concluded the three were victims of a jury prejudiced by the airing of a secretly recorded drunken, racist diatribe by Hazelwood. Prosecutors have not announced whether they will retry Hazelwood. But his lawyer says prosecutors will not fight efforts to have his ankle monitor removed and confinement rescinded.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold two phone clinics this week for members of the public with questions about housing and renters’ rights, bankruptcy, medical bills, debt collection, domestic violence, SNAP benefits and unemployment benefits. Clinics will take place Thursday from 4:30 to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. All times central. LAS is looking for attorneys to help answer questions. To volunteer, contact Andrae Crismon or Kendra Cheek or call 615-780-7131.

Make plans now to join colleagues for the 2021 Virtual Construction Forum on Jan. 22. This year's forum includes an in-depth analysis of construction legislative updates, including important changes to the Prompt Pay Act and construction lien laws; sessions on remote hearings, depositions and mediations; and a review of ethical considerations for navigating virtual court proceedings. The half-day program offers four hours of CLE credit, including one hour of dual credit.

The Tennessee Supreme Court will hear two cases tomorrow via livestream videoconferencing. Regions Bank v. Nathan I. Prager will be heard at 9 a.m. CST and Cynthia E. Yebuah et al. v. Center for Urological Treatment, PLC will be heard at 10:30 a.m. CST. Both cases can be seen on the TNCourts YouTube page. For summaries of both cases, visit the Administrative Office of the Court’s webpage.  

Legal research companies Casemaker and Fastcase today announced that they have merged, the ABA Journal reports. The companies, longtime competitors who have previously faced off in litigation, report that more than one million lawyers combined subscribe to their services. Clients of both companies will not see an interruption in their services but will gain immediate access to legal libraries not previously offered in the competing product. Per the merger, Fastcase will serve as the parent company. According to a press release from Fastcase, its recent acquisition of Docket Alarm, NextChapter and Law Street Media, as well as Casemaker’s caselaw citator in CaseCheck+ and its leading digest for state bar associations will be beneficial for users of both platforms. Fastcase provides Premium-Level Access for TBA members.